Retribution
Chapter 5: Competition
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Author: Jun-I
Pairing: Kambei/Kyuzo (later)
Warnings and Disclaimers: See Chapter 1
Note: Ayame is Kyuuzou's senpai (Sensei's senior student). She is three years older than him and is NOBODY's (or at least no man's) love interest. Kyuuzou called her 'goddess of speed' when he was a child (see companion fic Wolf Warriors). He doesn't like her, but he wouldn't mind being like her.
Kyuuzou POV:
I walked on into the desert, still contemplating how I should follow after Kanbei without giving him the impression I was interested in him. Without planning to, I had caught up with one of the Nobuseri who left Kanbei and me behind just a while ago. "Hmm... while I'm at it, I might as well take this one out." I thought. "It's been a long time since I've thrown one of those Ayame-style lightning-fast series of combination techniques."
I think I might have out-Ayame'd Ayame on this one. Seconds later, the Raiden lay before me in smoking ruins. It was a piece of cake.
Just then, a series of cannon balls flew past me. It was Hyogo again. Fortunately he had really bad aim. Then when he saw that I had noticed him, he began his little speech about how much better it would be for me to forget about Kanbei and return to Kougakyo. That hypocrite. First he tried to kill me, and failing that, started to talk peace. And while he was spinning his sugary words, the Yakans were closing in around me. They also brought the captive robot Kikuchiyo with them, all trussed up. Kanbei's gang must have been watching all this while; they decided to jump in to rescue their comrade at that very moment. They did a fair deal of damage on those tea kettles.
Suddenly faced with four highly skilled samurai and the loss of half of his tea kettle collection, Hyogo shifted gears. He offered me the chance to duel with Kanbei there and then, with him as the judge. If I won, I would be able to return to Ayamaro without consequences. If I was killed, Hyogo would kill Kanbei himself. I did not believe for one second he meant to keep his word. Kanbei didn't seem interested in Hyogo's game either; I saw him slide his sword back into its sheath.
The lying queen was just waiting for Kanbei and I to be occupied with each other. Then he would put a bullet through one of us. Don't think I did not noticed his gun trained on us while he was selling me this sweet deal. We had no choice but to play Hyogo's game. Kanbei and I looked at each other squarely in the eye. Was he thinking what I was thinking? As we moved our hands to our swords, I wondered if Hyogo's finger was on the trigger. My back was to Hyogo. Kanbei was the one who had a view of the cannon. If Hyogo pulled the trigger, would Shimada act in both our interests?
I would never know, for just then, I heard Hyogo's cannon go off. But neither Kanbei nor I were hit. There was no time to waste, however. I spun around and sliced up both the cannon and Hyogo. It was later that I realized Hyogo's shot was actually directed at the child samurai Katsushiro, who had attacked from behind to free Kikuchiyo. Even then, I was not sorry. I still think Hyogo had every intention of killing me first chance he got.
As I looked down at my dying ex-colleague, he asked, "Why, Kyuuzou?" I replied, "I want to try living a real life, for once." With his last breath, he called me a fool. So be it then. I once thought my sisters were fools. Perhaps they were. But they slept well at night and were proud to look themselves in the mirror every morning. Would it be so wrong for me to desire the same?
Kanbei turned to me and asked me if I would accompany him, I mean, them. Without even a glance at him, I asked, "When are we leaving?"
"Now," he replied. As he turned to leave, the peasant priestess pushed her way through the crowd and came up to him. "This person is an enemy!" she declared.
Such unprovoked rudeness! Having a conversation about me right in front of my face, without even looking at me. Her eyes were only on Kanbei. How annoying! If she pisses me off further I may have to bitch slap her all the way back to Kanna. Not the first time I've attracted hostility from random females I've only just met! For some odd reason, they seem to see me as 'competition' even when I have no interest in competing with them. But then if I could survive Ayame, this Kirara is really nothing.